Single amino acid substitutions in the cAMP receptor protein specifically abolish regulation by the CytR repressor in Escherichia coli

Mutations in the Global Transcription Factor CRP/CAP: Insights from Experimental Evolution and Deep Sequencing

The Escherichia coli cyclic AMP receptor protein (CRP or catabolite activator protein, CAP) provides a textbook example of bacterial transcriptional regulation and is one of the best studied transcription factors in biology. For almost five decades a large number of mutants, evolved in vivo or engineered in vitro, have shed light on the molecular structure and mechanism of CRP. Here, we review previous work, providing an overview of studies describing the isolation of CRP mutants. Furthermore, we present new data on deep sequencing of different bacterial populations that have evolved under selective pressure that strongly favors mutations in the crp locus. Our new approach identifies more than 100 new CRP mutations and paves the way for a deeper understanding of this fascinating bacterial master regulator.

The cooperative binding energetics of CytR and cAMP receptor protein support a quantitative model of differential activation and repression of CytR-regulated class III Escherichia coli promoters

cAMP receptor protein (CRP) and CytR mediate positive and negative control of nine genes in Escherichia coli, most of which are involved in nucleoside catabolism and recycling. Five promoters share a common architecture in which tandem CRP sites flank an intervening CytR operator (CytO). CytR and CRP bind cooperatively to these promoters to form a three-protein, DNA-bound complex that controls activation and repression, the levels of which vary markedly among the promoters. To understand the specific combinatorial control mechanisms that are responsible for this outcome, we have used quantitative DNase I footprinting to generate individual site isotherms for each site of protein-DNA interaction. The intrinsic affinities of each transcription factor for its respective site and the specific patterns of cooperativity and competition underlying the molecular interactions at each promoter were determined by a global analysis of these titration data. Here we present results obtained for nupGP and tsxP2, adding to results published previously for deoP2, udpP, and cddP. These data allowed us to correlate the reported levels of activation, repression, and induction with the ligation states of these five promoters under physiologically relevant conditions. A general pattern of transcriptional regulation emerges that allows for complex patterns of regulation in this seemingly simple system.

Dynamic fluctuations provide the basis of a conformational switch mechanism in apo cyclic AMP receptor protein

Escherichia coli cyclic AMP Receptor Protein (CRP) undergoes conformational changes with cAMP binding and allosterically promotes CRP to bind specifically to the DNA. In that, the structural and dynamic properties of apo CRP prior to cAMP binding are of interest for the comprehension of the activation mechanism. Here, the dynamics of apo CRP monomer/dimer and holo CRP dimer were studied by Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations and Gaussian Network Model (GNM). The interplay of the inter-domain hinge with the cAMP and DNA binding domains are pre-disposed in the apo state as a conformational switch in the CRP's allosteric communication mechanism. The hinge at L134-D138 displaying intra- and inter-subunit coupled fluctuations with the cAMP and DNA binding domains leads to the emergence of stronger coupled fluctuations between the two domains and describes an on state. The flexible regions at K52-E58, P154/D155 and I175 maintain the dynamic coupling of the two domains. With a shift in the inter-domain hinge position towards the N terminus, nevertheless, the latter correlations between the domains loosen and become disordered; L134-D138 dynamically interacts only with the cAMP and DNA binding domains of its own subunit, and an off state is assumed. We present a mechanistic view on how the structural dynamic units are hierarchically built for the allosteric functional mechanism; from apo CRP monomer to apo-to-holo CRP dimers.

Comparative genomics of CytR, an unusual member of the LacI family of transcription factors

CytR is a transcription regulator from the LacI family, present in some gamma-proteobacteria including Escherichia coli and known not only for its cellular role, control of transport and utilization of nucleosides, but for a number of unusual structural properties. The present study addressed three related problems: structure of CytR-binding sites and motifs, their evolutionary conservation, and identification of new members of the CytR regulon. While the majority of CytR-binding sites are imperfect inverted repeats situated between binding sites for another transcription factor, CRP, other architectures were observed, in particular, direct repeats. While the similarity between sites for different genes in one genome is rather low, and hence the consensus motif is weak, there is high conservation of orthologous sites in different genomes (mainly in the Enterobacteriales) arguing for the presence of specific CytR-DNA contacts. On larger evolutionary distances candidate CytR sites may migrate but the approximate distance between flanking CRP sites tends to be conserved, which demonstrates that the overall structure of the CRP-CytR-DNA complex is gene-specific. The analysis yielded candidate CytR-binding sites for orthologs of known regulon members in less studied genomes of the Enterobacteriales and Vibrionales and identified a new candidate member of the CytR regulon, encoding a transporter named NupT (YcdZ).

An unusual pattern of CytR and CRP binding energetics at Escherichia coli cddP suggests a unique blend of class I and class II mediated activation

Two transcription factors, CRP and CytR, mediate positive and negative control of nine cistrons involved in nucleoside catabolism and recycling in Escherichia coli. The ability of multiple transcription factors to combine in different ways to confer differential gene regulation is of significant interest in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic gene regulation. Analysis of cooperative interactions between CytR and CRP at the deoP2 and udpP promoters has implicated the importance of promoter architecture in controlling repression and induction. These studies have also identified competition between CytR and CRP as an additional contributor to differential regulation. The pattern and energetics of CytR and CRP interactions at the cdd promoter, the most strongly activated of the CytR-regulated promoters, have been delineated using DNase I footprinting. Surprisingly, CRP has greater affinity for the promoter proximal site at cddP, CRP1, than for the distal site, CRP2, in contrast to promoters studied previously. This difference is a major contributor to unusually high CRP-mediated activation of cddP. Additionally, while cytidine binding to CytR nearly eliminates the pairwise interactions between CytR and CRP bound at CRP1, it has little effect on pairwise cooperativity between CytR and CRP bound at CRP2 or as a consequence on the overall cooperativity of the three-protein complex in which CRP is bound to both sites. The effect of cytidine binding on cooperativity differs between the three promoters studied thus far. We propose that the different patterns of interaction reflect the spacing between CytR half-sites and the location of the CytR operator in relation to the two CRP sites.

Catabolite Activator Protein in Aqueous Solution: A Molecular Simulation Study

The homodimeric catabolite activator protein (CAP) is a bacterial DNA binding transcription regulator whose activity is controlled by the binding of the intracellular mediator cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP). Each CAP subunit consists of a cyclic nucleotide and a DNA binding domain. Here, we investigate the structural features of the ligand-bound CAP in aqueous solution by molecular dynamics simulations based on the available X-ray structures (Passner et al. J. Mol. Biol. 2000, 304, 847-859 and Chen et al. J. Mol. Biol. 2001, 314, 63-74). Our calculations suggest that the homodimer in solution assumes a symmetric arrangement in which both DNA binding domains are separated from the respective cyclic nucleotide binding domains by a cleft. This contrasts with the X-ray structure, which exhibits instead an asymmetric conformation. On the basis of electrostatics calculations, we propose that the symmetric structure in solution may be an important feature for DNA molecular recognition.

Fluorescence quenching and kinetic studies of conformational changes induced by DNA and cAMP binding to cAMP receptor protein from Escherichia coli

Cyclic AMP receptor protein (CRP) regulates the expression of more then 100 genes in Escherichia coli. It is known that the allosteric activation of CRP by cAMP involves a long-distance signal transmission from the N-terminal cAMP-binding domain to the C-terminal domain of CRP responsible for the interactions with specific sequences of DNA. In this report we have used a CRP mutant containing a single Trp13 located in the N-terminal domain of the protein. We applied the iodide and acrylamide fluorescence quenching method in order to study how different DNA sequences and cAMP binding induce the conformational changes in the CRP molecule. The results presented provide evidence for the occurrence of a long-distance conformational signal transduction within the protein from the C-terminal DNA-binding domain to the N-terminal domain of CRP. This conformational signal transmission depends on the promoter sequence. We also used the stopped-flow and Forster resonance energy transfer between labeled Cys178 of CRP and fluorescently labeled DNA sequences to study the kinetics of DNA-CRP interactions. The results thus obtained lead to the conclusion that CRP can exist in several conformational states and that their distribution is affected by binding of both the cAMP and of specific DNA sequences.

Steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence studies of conformational changes induced by cyclic AMP and DNA binding to cyclic AMP receptor protein from Escherichia coli

cAMP receptor protein (CRP), allosterically activated by cAMP, regulates the expression of several genes in Escherichia coli. As binding of cAMP leads to undefined conformational changes in CRP, we performed a steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence study to show how the binding of the ligand influences the structure and dynamics of the protein. We used CRP mutants containing a single tryptophan residue at position 85 or 13, and fluorescently labeled with 1,5-I-AEDANS attached to Cys178. Binding of cAMP in the CRP-(cAMP)2 complex leads to changes in the Trp13 microenvironment, whereas its binding in the CRP-(cAMP)4 complex alters the surroundings of Trp85. Time-resolved anisotropy measurements indicated that cAMP binding in the CRP-(cAMP)2 complex led to a substantial increase in the rotational mobility of the Trp13 residue. Measurement of fluorescence energy transfer (FRET) between labeled Cys178 and Trp85 showed that the binding of cAMP in the CRP-(cAMP)2 complex caused a substantial increase in FRET efficiency. This indicates a decrease in the distance between the two domains of the protein from 26.6 A in apo-CRP to 18.7 A in the CRP-(cAMP)2 complex. The binding of cAMP in the CRP-(cAMP)4 complex resulted in only a very small increase in FRET efficiency. The average distance between the two domains in CRP-DNA complexes, possessing lac, gal or ICAP sequences, shows an increase, as evidenced by the increase in the average distance between Cys178 and Trp85 to approximately 20 A. The spectral changes observed provide new structural information about the cAMP-induced allosteric activation of the protein.

Spot 42 RNA mediates discoordinate expression of the E. coli galactose operon

The physiological role of Escherichia coli Spot 42 RNA has remained obscure, even though the 109-nucleotide RNA was discovered almost three decades ago. Structural features of Spot 42 RNA and previous work suggested to us that the RNA might be a regulator of discoordinate gene expression of the galactose operon, a control that is only understood at the phenomenological level. The effects of controlled expression of Spot 42 RNA or deleting the gene (spf) encoding the RNA supported this hypothesis. Down-regulation of galK expression, the third gene in the gal operon, was only observed in the presence of Spot 42 RNA and required growth conditions that caused derepression of the spf gene. Subsequent biochemical studies showed that Spot 42 RNA specifically bound at the galK Shine-Dalgarno region of the galETKM mRNA, thereby blocking ribosome binding. We conclude that Spot 42 RNA is an antisense RNA that acts to differentially regulate genes that are expressed from the same transcription unit. Our results reveal an interesting mechanism by which the expression of a promoter distal gene in an operon can be modulated and underline the importance of antisense control in bacterial gene regulation.

Repression of deoP2 in Escherichia coli by CytR: conversion of a transcription activator into a repressor

In the deoP2 promoter of Escherichia coli, a transcription activator, cAMP-CRP, binds at two sites, centered at -41.5 and -93.5 from the start site of transcription, while a repressor, CytR, binds to a space between the two cAMP-CRP complexes. The mechanisms for the cAMP-CRP-mediated transcription activation and CytR-mediated transcription repression were investigated in vitro using purified components. We classified the deoP2 promoter as a class II cAMP-CRP-dependent promoter, primarily by the action of cAMP-CRP at the downstream site. Interestingly, we also found that deoP2 carries an "UP-element" immediately upstream of the downstream cAMP-CRP site. The UP-element overlaps with the DNA site for CytR. However, it was observed that CytR functions with the RNA polymerase devoid of the C-terminal domain of the alpha-subunit as well as with intact RNA polymerase. The mechanism of repression by CytR proposed in this study is that the cAMP-CRP bound at -41.5 undergoes an allosteric change upon direct interaction with CytR such that it no longer maintains a productive interaction with the N-terminal domain of alpha, but instead acts as a repressor to interfere with RNA polymerase acting on deoP2.

In vitro interaction of the Escherichia coli cyclic AMP receptor protein with the lactose repressor

Sedimentation equilibrium studies show that the Escherichia coli cyclic AMP receptor protein (CAP) and lactose repressor associate to form a 2:1 complex in vitro. This is, to our knowledge, the first demonstration of a direct interaction of these proteins in the absence of DNA. No 1:1 complex was detected over a wide range of CAP concentrations, suggesting that binding is highly cooperative. Complex formation is stimulated by cAMP, with a net uptake of 1 equivalent of cAMP per molecule of CAP bound. Substitution of the dimeric lacI-18 mutant repressor for tetrameric wild-type repressor completely eliminates detectable binding. We therefore propose that CAP binds the cleft between dimeric units in the repressor tetramer. CAP-lac repressor interactions may play important roles in regulatory events that take place at overlapping CAP and repressor binding sites in the lactose promoter.

Identification of the subunit of cAMP receptor protein (CRP) that functionally interacts with CytR in CRP-CytR-mediated transcriptional repression

At promoters of the Escherichia coli CytR regulon, the cAMP receptor protein (CRP) interacts with the repressor CytR to form transcriptionally inactive CRP-CytR-promoter or (CRP)(2)-CytR-promoter complexes. Here, using "oriented heterodimer" analysis, we show that only one subunit of the CRP dimer, the subunit proximal to CytR, functionally interacts with CytR in CRP-CytR-promoter and (CRP)(2)-CytR-promoter complexes. Our results provide information about the architecture of CRP-CytR-promoter and (CRP)(2)-CytR-promoter complexes and rule out the proposal that masking of activating region 2 of CRP is responsible for the transcriptional inactivity of the complexes.

Transcription activation by catabolite activator protein (CAP)

Transcription activation by Escherichia coli catabolite activator protein (CAP) at each of two classes of simple CAP-dependent promoters is understood in structural and mechanistic detail. At class I CAP-dependent promoters, CAP activates transcription from a DNA site located upstream of the DNA site for RNA polymerase holoenzyme (RNAP); at these promoters, transcription activation involves protein-protein interactions between CAP and the RNAP alpha subunit C-terminal domain that facilitate binding of RNAP to promoter DNA to form the RNAP-promoter closed complex. At class II CAP-dependent promoters, CAP activates transcription from a DNA site that overlaps the DNA site for RNAP; at these promoters, transcription activation involves both: (i) protein-protein interactions between CAP and RNAP alpha subunit C-terminal domain that facilitate binding of RNAP to promoter DNA to form the RNAP-promoter closed complex; and (ii) protein-protein interactions between CAP and RNAP alpha subunit N-terminal domain that facilitates isomerization of the RNAP-promoter closed complex to the RNAP-promoter open complex. Straightforward combination of the mechanisms for transcription activation at class I and class II CAP-dependent promoters permits synergistic transcription activation by multiple molecules of CAP, or by CAP and other activators. Interference with determinants of CAP or RNAP involved in transcription activation at class I and class II CAP-dependent promoters permits "anti-activation" by negative regulators. Basic features of transcription activation at class I and class II CAP-dependent promoters appear to be generalizable to other activators.

DNA-induced conformational changes in cyclic AMP receptor protein: detection and mapping by a protein footprinting technique using multiple chemical proteases

Cyclic AMP receptor protein (CRP) is a regulator of transcription in Escherichia coli which mediates its activity by binding specific DNA sequences in a cyclic AMP-dependent manner. The interaction of CRP with specific DNA was probed by a protein footprinting technique using chemical proteases of different charge, size, and hydrophobicity. The experimental data were compared with known crystal structures of cAMP-CRP and cAMP-CRP-DNA complexes to determine a correlation between the structure of the complexes, the nature of the chemical protease and protein cleavage patterns. In addition, such comparison allowed us to determine if DNA binding in solution induced conformational changes in the protein not apparent in the crystal structure. In the cAMP-CRP-DNA complex, both the protections and the enhancements of proteolytic cleavage were observed outside of the known CRP-DNA interface, suggesting that CRP undergoes a conformational change upon binding DNA. Among the observed changes, the most interesting were those around the B alpha-helix and beta-strand 8, since this region overlaps with the activation region 2 which CRP uses for protein-protein interactions with RNA polymerase. DNA-induced changes were observed also in the region involved in CRP-CytR interaction and in CRP intersubunit contact regions. These data suggest that binding of DNA in solution induces conformational changes in CRP which can be transmitted via intersubunit contacts to regions of the protein involved in interactions with other members of transcriptional machinery.

Dissection of a surface-exposed portion of the cAMP-CRP complex that mediates transcription activation and repression

The Escherichia coli cAMP receptor protein (CRP) is essential for the activation and repression of transcription initiation at promoters in the CytR regulon. CRP performs these activities by making direct protein-protein interactions to the alpha-subunits of RNA polymerase and to the CytR regulator. Strikingly, it has been shown that amino acids of CRP that are critical for communication with the two partner proteins are located in close proximity on the surface of CRP. Here, we have dissected this surface in order to pinpoint the 'repression region' of CRP and to assess whether it overlaps with the characterized 'activating region'. Our results established that residues 12, 13, 17, 105, 108 and 110 are essential for the interaction with CytR and confirmed that 'activating region' 2 of CRP is made up of residues 19, 21 and 101. In the crystallographic structure of the CRP-DNA complex, the two sets of determinants are located immediately adjacent to each other forming a consecutive surface-exposed patch. The 'repression region' is chemically complementary to the characterized region on CytR that is essential for protein-protein communication to CRP. Moreover, the results provide insight into the mechanism by which CytR might prevent CRP-mediated transcription.

Protein-ligand interaction: grafting of the uridine-specific determinants from the CytR regulator of Salmonella typhimurium to Escherichia coli CytR

Members of the LacI family of transcriptional repressors respond to the presence of small effector molecules. The binding of the ligands affect the proteins ability to repress transcription by stabilizing a conformation that, in most cases, is unfavorable for high-affinity DNA binding. The CytR anti-activator diverges from the other family members by relying on the cooperative DNA binding with the global regulator CRP. The inducers of CytR do not affect CytR-DNA binding per se, but alleviate repression by interrupting protein-protein interactions between the two regulators. Here, we have studied of the CytR-inducer interaction by exploring a discrepancy in the inducer response observed for the homologous CytR regulators of Escherichia coli and Salmonella typhimurium. CytR of S. typhimurium (CytRSt) appears to respond to the presence of both uridine and cytidine nucleosides, whereas E. coli CytR (CytREc) responds to cytidine only. We have used a combination of genetic and structural modeling studies to provide detailed information regarding the nature of this discrepancy. By analysis of hybrid CytR proteins followed by site-directed mutagenesis, we have successfully transferred the specificity determinants for uridine from CytRSt to CytREc, revealing that serine substitutions of only two residues (G131 and A152) in CytREc is required to make CytREc sensitive to uridine. In addition, by employing a genetic screen for induction of defective mutants, we have identified four amino acid residues in CytRSt that appear to be important for the response to uridine. The implications of these findings for the understanding of the ligand binding and induction of CytR are discussed in the context of the structural knowledge of CytR and homologous protein-ligand complexes.

Transcription of rpoH, encoding the Escherichia coli heat-shock regulator sigma32, is negatively controlled by the cAMP-CRP/CytR nucleoprotein complex

In Escherichia coli, the rpoH gene encoding the essential heat-shock regulator sigma32, is expressed in a complex manner. Transcription occurs from four promoters (P1, P3, P4 and P5) and is modulated by several factors including (i) two sigma factors (sigma70 and sigmaE); (ii) the global regulator CRP; and (iii) the DnaA protein. Here, a further dissection of the rpoH regulatory region has revealed that an additional transcription control exists that appears to link rpoH expression to nucleoside metabolism. The cAMP-CRP complex and the CytR anti-activator bind co-operatively to the promoter region forming a repression complex that overlaps the sigmaE-dependent P3 promoter and the sigma70-dependent P4 and P5 promoters. During steady-state growth conditions with glycerol as the carbon and energy source, transcription from P3, P4 and P5 is reduced approximately threefold by CytR, whereas transcription from the upstream promoter, P1, appears to be unaffected. Furthermore, in strains that slightly overproduce CytR, transcription from P3, P4 and P5 is reduced even further (approximately 10-fold), and repression can be fully neutralized by the addition of the inducer cytidine to the growth medium. In the induced state, P4 is the strongest promoter and, together with P3 and P5, it is responsible for most rpoH transcription (65-70%). At present, CytR has been shown to 'fine tune' transcription of two genes (rpoH and ppiA) that are connected with protein-folding activities. These findings suggest that additional assistance in protein folding is required under conditions in which CytR is induced (i.e. in the presence of nucleosides).

DNA bending and expression of the divergent nagE-B operons

Repression of the divergent nagE - B operons requires NagC binding to two operators which overlap the nagE and nagB promoters, resulting in formation of a DNA loop. Binding of the cAMP/CAP activator to its site, adjacent to the nagE operator, stabilizes the DNA loop in vitro. The DNA of the nagE-B intergenic region is intrinsically bent, with the bend centred on the CAP site. We show that displacement of the CAP site by 6 bp results in complete derepression of the two operons. This derepression is observed even in the absence of cAMP/CAP binding and despite the fact that the two NagC operators are still in phase, demonstrating that the inherently bent structure of the DNA loop is important for repression. Since no interaction between NagC and CAP has been detected, we propose that the role of CAP in the repression loop is architectural, stabilizing the intrinsic bend. The cAMP/CAP complex is necessary for activation of the nagE-B promoters. In this case protein-protein contacts between CAP and RNA polymerase are necessary for full activation, but at least a part of the activation is likely due to an effect of CAP binding altering DNA structure.

Protein-protein communication: structural model of the repression complex formed by CytR and the global regulator CRP

The cAMP receptor protein (CRP) and the LacI-related CytR antiactivator bind cooperatively to adjacent DNA sites at or near promoters, an interaction that involves direct protein contacts. Here, we identify a collection of amino acid substitutions in CytR that reestablish protein-protein communication to mutant CRP proteins specifically defective in cooperative binding with wild-type CytR. To assess the location and spatial arrangement of these substitutions, we built a three-dimensional model of CytR based on the recent X-ray structure of the highly homologous PurR repressor bound to DNA. This approach enables us to specify the patch on CytR's surface that contacts CRP. Furthermore, our results permit the construction of a three-dimensional structure of the higher order nucleoprotein complex formed by CytR and CRP.

Protein-induced fit: the CRP activator protein changes sequence-specific DNA recognition by the CytR repressor, a highly flexible LacI member

The CytR repressor and the cAMP receptor protein (CRP) bind cooperatively to several promoters in Escherichia coli to repress transcription initiation. The synergistic binding is mediated by protein-protein interactions between the two regulators. Here, in vitro selection experiments have been used to examine the DNA-binding characteristics of CytR, by itself and when co-binding with cAMP-CRP. We show that the optimal CytR-binding site consists of two octamer repeats, in direct or inverted orientation, and separated by 2 bp. However, when co-binding with cAMP-CRP, CytR instead recognizes inverted repeats separated by 10-13 bp, or direct repeats separated by 1 bp. The configurations of the latter set of operators correlate well with the configurations of natural CytR targets. Thus, cAMP-CRP induces conformational changes in CytR so that the repressor fits the natural targets. Most strikingly, CytR can adopt widely different conformations that are equally favored energetically for complex formation with cAMP-CRP. We propose that this structural adaptability is essential for CytR repression of promoters with diverse architectures. We discuss these novel concepts in the context of the CRP/CytR regulatory system, as well as the structural and functional implications for multiprotein-DNA complex formation in general.

Design of CytR regulated, cAMP-CRP dependent class II promoters in Escherichia coli: RNA polymerase-promoter interactions modulate the efficiency of CytR repression

In CytR regulated promoters in Escherichia coli, the cAMP-CRP complex acts as a transcriptional activator as well as a co-repressor for the CytR protein. Repression by CytR depends on the formation of nucleoprotein complexes in which CytR binds cooperatively to the DNA with one or two cAMP-CRP complexes. Here, we demonstrate that in order to establish CytR regulation in a cAMP-CRP dependent class II promoter with a single CRP site (CRP site centred around position -40.5) in which the CytR operator is located upstream of the CRP site, high affinity binding sites for both regulators are required. The efficiency of CytR regulation was observed to be modulated by RNA polymerase (RNAP)-promoter interactions. Specifically, in class II promoters with a single CRP site, the efficiency of CytR regulation was found to correlate inversely with cAMP-CRP independent promoter activity. These observations can be reconciled in a competition model for CytR regulation in which CytR and RNAP compete for cooperative binding with cAMP-CRP to the promoters in vivo. In this model, two mutually exclusive ternary complexes can be formed: a CytR/cAMP-CRP/promoter repression complex and an RNAP/cAMP-CRP/promoter activation complex. Thus, CytR regulation critically depends on formation of a repression complex that binds the promoter with sufficiently high affinity to exclude formation of the competing activation complex. We suggest that the transition from repression to activation involves a switch in the protein-protein interactions made by cAMP-CRP from CytR to RNAP. On the basis of the regulatory features of the promoters analysed here, we speculate about the advantages offered by the structural complexity of natural CytR/cAMP-CRP regulated promoters.

Multiple specific CytR binding sites at the Escherichia coli deoP2 promoter mediate both cooperative and competitive interactions between CytR and cAMP receptor protein

Binding of cAMP receptor protein (CRP) and CytR mediates both positive and negative control of transcription from Escherichia coli deoP2. Transcription is activated by CRP and repressed by a multi-protein CRP.CytR.CRP complex. The latter is stabilized by cooperative interactions between CRP and CytR. Similar interactions at the other transcriptional units of the CytR regulon coordinate expression of the transport proteins and enzymes required for nucleoside catabolism. A fundamental question in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic gene regulation is how combinatorial mechanisms of this sort regulate differential expression. To understand the combinatorial control mechanism at deoP2, we have used quantitative footprint and gel shift analysis of CRP and CytR binding to evaluate the distribution of ligation states. By comparison to distributions for other CytR-regulated promoters, we hope to understand the roles of individual states in differential gene expression. The results indicate that CytR binds specifically to multiple sites at deoP2, including both the well recognized CytR site flanked by CRP1 and CRP2 and also sites coincident with CRP1 and CRP2. Binding to these multiple sites yields both cooperative and competitive interactions between CytR and CRP. Based on these findings we propose that CytR functions as a differential modulator of CRP1 versus CRP2-mediated activation. Additional high affinity specific sites are located at deoP1 and near the middle of the 600-base pair sequence separating P1 and P2. Evaluation of the DNA sequence requirement for specific CytR binding suggests that a limited array of contiguous and overlapping CytR sites exists at deoP2. Similar extended arrays, but with different arrangements of overlapping CytR and CRP sites, are found at the other CytR-regulated promoters. We propose that competition and cooperativity in CytR and CRP binding are important to differential regulation of these promoters.

Dual-function regulators: the cAMP receptor protein and the CytR regulator can act either to repress or to activate transcription depending on the context

Studies of gene regulation have revealed that several transcriptional regulators can switch between activator and repressor depending upon both the promoter and the cellular context. A relatively simple prokaryotic example is illustrated by the Escherichia coli CytR regulon. In this system, the cAMP receptor protein (CRP) assists the binding of RNA polymerase as well as a specific negative regulator, CytR. Thus, CRP functions either as an activator or as a corepressor. Here we show that, depending on promoter architecture, the CRP/CytR nucleoprotein complex has opposite effects on transcription. When acting from a site close to the DNA target for RNA polymerase, CytR interacts with CRP to repress transcription, whereas an interaction with CRP from appropriately positioned upstream binding sites can result in formation of a huge preinitiation complex and transcriptional activation. Based on recent results about CRP-mediated regulation of transcription initiation and the finding that CRP possesses discrete surface-exposed patches for protein-protein interaction with RNA polymerase and CytR, a molecular model for this dual regulation is discussed.

Transcription activation at the Escherichia coli uhpT promoter by the catabolite gene activator protein

Transport and utilization of sugar phosphates in Escherichia coli depend on the transport protein encoded by the uhpT gene. Transmembrane induction of uhpT expression by external glucose 6-phosphate is positively regulated by the promoter-specific activator protein UhpA and the global regulator catabolite gene activator protein (CAP). Activation by UhpA requires a promoter element centered at -64 bp, relative to the start of transcription, and activation by CAP requires a DNA site centered at position -103.5. This DNA site binds the cyclic AMP-CAP complex in vitro, and its deletion from the promoter reduces transcription activity to 7 to 9% of the wild-type level. Ten uhpT promoter derivatives with altered spacing between the DNA site for CAP and the remainder of the promoter were constructed. Their transcription activities indicated that the action of CAP at this promoter is dependent on proper helical phasing of promoter elements, with CAP binding on the same face of the helix as RNA polymerase does. Five CAP mutants defective in transcription activation at class I and class II CAP-dependent promoters but not defective in DNA binding or DNA bending (positive control mutants) were tested for the ability to activate transcription. These CAPpc mutants exhibited little or no defect in transcription activation at uhpT, indicating that CAP action at uhpTp involves a different mechanism than that which is used for its action at other classes of CAP-dependent promoters.

The gene encoding the periplasmic cyclophilin homologue, PPIase A, in Escherichia coli, is expressed from four promoters, three of which are activated by the cAMP-CRP complex and negatively regulated by the CytR repressor

The rot gene in Escherichia coli encodes PPIase A, a periplasmic peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase with homology to the cyclophilin family of proteins. Here it is demonstrated that rot is expressed in a complex manner from four overlapping promoters and that the rot regulatory region is unusually compact, containing a close array of sites for DNA-binding proteins. The three most upstream rot promoters are activated by the global gene regulatory cAMP-CRP complex and negatively regulated by the CytR repressor protein. Activation of these three promoters occurs by binding of cAMP-CRP to two sites separated by 53 bp. Moreover, one of the cAMP-CRP complexes is involved in the activation of both a Class I and a Class II promoter. Repression takes place by the formation of a CytR/cAMP-CRP/DNA nucleoprotein complex consisting of the two cAMP-CRP molecules and CytR bound in between. The two regulators bind co-operatively to the DNA overlapping the three upstream promoters, simultaneously quenching the cAMP-CRP activator function. These results expand the CytR regulon to include a gene whose product has no known function in ribo- and deoxyribonucleoside catabolism or transport.

Functions of the gene products of Escherichia coli

A list of currently identified gene products of Escherichia coli is given, together with a bibliography that provides pointers to the literature on each gene product. A scheme to categorize cellular functions is used to classify the gene products of E. coli so far identified. A count shows that the numbers of genes concerned with small-molecule metabolism are on the same order as the numbers concerned with macromolecule biosynthesis and degradation. One large category is the category of tRNAs and their synthetases. Another is the category of transport elements. The categories of cell structure and cellular processes other than metabolism are smaller. Other subjects discussed are the occurrence in the E. coli genome of redundant pairs and groups of genes of identical or closely similar function, as well as variation in the degree of density of genetic information in different parts of the genome.

Nitrate regulation of anaerobic respiratory gene expression in Escherichia coli

Synthesis of most anaerobic respiratory pathways is subject to dual regulation by anaerobiosis and nitrate. Anaerobic induction is mediated by the FNR protein. Dual interacting two-component regulatory systems mediate nitrate induction and repression. The response regulator protein NARL binds DNA to control nitrate induction and repression of genes encoding nitrate respiration enzymes and alternate anaerobic respiratory enzymes, respectively. The homologous protein NARP controls nitrite induction of at least two operons. Nitrate and nitrite signalling are both mediated by the homologous sensor proteins NARX and NARQ. Recent mutational analyses have defined a heptamer sequence necessary for specific DNA binding by the NARL protein. These heptamers are located at different positions in the control regions of different operons. The NARL protein-binding sites in the narG (nitrate reductase) and narK (nitrate-nitrite antiporter) operon control regions are located approximately 200bp upstream of the transcription initiation site. The integration host factor (IHF) greatly stimulates nitrate induction of these operons, indicating that a specific DNA loop brings NARL protein, bound at the upstream region, into the proximity of the promoter for transcription activation. Other NARL protein-dependent opersons do not require IHF for nitrate induction, and the arrangement of NARL heptamer sequences in these control regions is quite different. This complexity of signal transduction pathways, coupled with the diversity of control region architecture, combine to provide many interesting areas for future investigation. An additional challenge is to determine how or if the FNR and NARL proteins interact to mediate dual positive control of transcription initiation.

Identification of the nucleotide sequence recognized by the cAMP-CRP dependent CytR repressor protein in the deoP2 promoter in E. coli

In E. coli repression of transcription initiation by the CytR protein relies on CytR-DNA interactions as well as on interactions between CytR and the cAMP-CRP activator complex. To identify the nucleotide sequence recognized by CytR, mutants of the deoP2 promoter with a reduced regulatory response to CytR have been isolated. Five single bp mutation derivatives of deoP2 with a 2-5-fold decrease in CytR regulation have been characterized. In vitro, the only effect of the mutations was a decrease in the binding affinity of CytR, and a clear correlation was observed between the reduction in CytR regulation in vivo and the reduction in CytR binding in vitro. The mutations all reside in a sequence element that contains an imperfect direct as well as an imperfect inverted repeat. As the active form of CytR, most likely, is an oligomer with two-fold rotational symmetry, CytR probably interacts with the inverted repeat. Degenerate versions of the inverted repeat are present in all CytR binding sites characterized so far, however, the distance between the half-sites varies.

A comparison of the DNA bending activities of the DNA binding proteins CRP and TFIID

Protein-induced DNA bending is of importance in the formation of complex nucleoprotein assemblies such as those involved in the initiation of DNA replication or transcription initiation. We have compared the DNA bending characteristics of the Escherichia coli cyclic AMP receptor protein (CRP or CAP), an archetypal DNA bending protein, to those of TFIID, the eukaryotic TATA-element binding transcription factor. By altering the helical phasing between a CRP binding site and the E. coli melR promoter we have mapped a DNA sequence-directed bend in the downstream region of the promoter. This intrinsic DNA bend may be important in the regulation of the melR promoter by CRP in vivo. Gel retardation assays and DNAse I footprinting show that human TFIID binds to the melR promoter - 10 region. Taking advantage of this fact, and using the CRP-induced DNA bend as a standard, we have employed phase sensitive detection to show that the DNA bend angle induced by TFIID is far less than that induced by CRP. Further evidence to support this conclusion comes from a comparison of the relative mobilities of CRP-DNA and TFIID-DNA complexes. These results place limits on the role of any DNA bending induced by TFIID alone in the initiation of transcription.

Amino acid substitutions in the CytR repressor which alter its capacity to regulate gene expression

In Escherichia coli, transport and catabolism of nucleosides require expression of the genes composing the CytR regulon. Transcription initiation of cistrons in this gene family is activated by cyclic AMP-catabolite activator protein (cAMP-CAP), repressed by the CytR protein, and induced by cytidine. A random proofreading mutagenesis procedure and a genetic screen using udp-lac fusions have allowed the identification of distinct regions of the 341-amino-acid CytR polypeptide that are critical for repression of gene expression and response to induction. Determination of the ability of various CytR mutants to control gene expression in vivo indicated that the intrinsic affinity of the CytR protein for operator DNA is gene specific and that efficient repression of transcription by wild-type CytR is dependent on the interaction of CytR with cAMP-CAP. CytR mutants that were cytidine induction defective (CID) were characterized; these mutant proteins had only Asp-281 replaced. Data obtained with cytR delta M149, a dominant negative allele, indicated that the native CytR repressor is an oligomeric protein. Representative cytR mutations were combined with cytR delta M149, and the resulting hybrid repressors were tested for transdominance in a CytR+ E. coli strain. Amino acid substitutions A209E and C289Y suppressed the transdominance of CytR delta M149, suggesting that these replacements alter the normal protein contacts involved in repressor subunit-subunit association. In contrast, amino acid substitutions located in the N-terminal portion of the CytR protein had no effect on the transdominance of CytR delta M149. The results from this study suggest that the CytR repressor is an oligomeric, allosteric protein in which conformational changes are required for repression and derepression.

The cyclic AMP (cAMP)-cAMP receptor protein complex functions both as an activator and as a corepressor at the tsx-p2 promoter of Escherichia coli K-12

The tsx-p2 promoter is one of at least seven Escherichia coli promoters that are activated by the cyclic AMP (cAMP)-cAMP receptor protein (CRP) complex and negatively regulated by the CytR repressor. DNase I footprinting assays were used to study the interactions of these regulatory proteins with the tsx-p2 promoter region and to characterize tsx-p2 regulatory mutants exhibiting an altered response to CytR. We show that the cAMP-CRP activator complex recognizes two sites in tsx-p2 that are separated by 33 bp: a high-affinity site (CRP-1) overlaps the -35 region, and a low-affinity site (CRP-2) is centered around position -74 bp. The CytR repressor protects a DNA segment that is located between the two CRP sites and partially overlaps the CRP-1 target. In combination, the cAMP-CRP and CytR proteins bind cooperatively to tsx-p2, and the nucleoprotein complex formed covers a region of 78 bp extending from the CRP-2 site close to the -10 region. The inducer for the CytR repressor, cytidine, does not prevent in vitro DNA binding of CytR, but releases the repressor from the nucleoprotein complex and leaves the cAMP-CRP activator bound to its two DNA targets. Thus, cytidine interferes with the cooperative DNA binding of cAMP-CRP and CytR to tsx-p2. We characterized four tsx-p2 mutants exhibiting a reduced response to CytR; three carried mutations in the CRP-2 site, and one carried a mutation in the region between CRP-1 and the -10 sequence. Formation of the cAMP-CRP-CytR DNA nucleoprotein complex in vitro was perturbed in each mutant. These data indicate that the CytR repressor relies on the presence of the cAMP-CRP activator complex to regulate tsx-p2 promoter activity and that the formation of an active repression complex requires the combined interactions of cAMP-CRP and CytR at tsx-p2.

A novel function of the cAMP-CRP complex in Escherichia coli: cAMP-CRP functions as an adaptor for the CytR repressor in the deo operon

Unlike classical bacterial repressors, the CytR repressor of Escherichia coli cannot independently regulate gene expression. Here we show that CytR binding to the deoP2 promoter relies on interaction with the master gene regulatory protein, CRP, and, furthermore, that cAMP-CRP and CytR bind co-operatively to deoP2. Using mutant promoters we show that tandem, properly spaced DNA-bound cAMP-CRP complexes are required for this co-operative binding. These data suggest that CytR forms a bridge between tandem cAMP-CRP complexes, and that cAMP-CRP functions as an adaptor for CytR. The implications of this new version of negative control in E. coli on bacterial gene expression and on combinatorial gene regulation in higher organisms are discussed.